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Chapter 247: Role-playing
Chapter 247: Role-playing
Albert had never been a suspicious person, at least not in his previous life, and this could be attributed to his past living environment. However, he now felt compelled to say that Professor Rowena Smith seemed a bit dubious. This conclusion was drawn from the myriad of intelligence he had gathered thus far.
Undeniably, Albert's bias as a transmigrator influenced his opinion, but he maintained that every professor of Dark Magic Defense who taught at Hogwarts before Voldemort's demise was likely there to stir up trouble and might even be implicated in certain matters.
Perhaps his final answer would differ greatly from his suspicions, but before Professor Smith left Hogwarts, Albert saw no harm in temporarily adding her to his blacklist.
He couldn't help but be wary, as Boggarts were closely linked to one's innermost fears, and Professor Smith's Boggart had taken the form of Isabell's father's corpse. This naturally aroused Albert's suspicions.
He even dared to speculate that Isabell's father's death was very likely related to Professor Smith, whether directly or indirectly; otherwise, how could one explain the form of Professor Smith's Boggart? According to Professor Broad's previous statement, Isabell's father had died in a magic experiment.
If one were to forcefully connect all the dots, the only commonality among the four of them was that they were all candidates for the heir, and they had all been groomed for that role.
Therefore, Albert boldly speculated that Isabell's father's failed magic experiment was induced by human factors, and Professor Smith was very likely the culprit. Thus, the corpse of Isabell's father becoming Professor Smith's object of fear could be attributed to her deliberately, unintentionally, or even indirectly killing her best friend, after all, it was her friend.
Albert recorded his speculations with a quill pen in a small notebook. Such a plot was actually quite common in detective novels, and the trigger was often related to a particular incident.
As for that so-called incident?
Naturally, it was about the heir.
In order to inherit a large sum of galleons and other valuable legacies, doing such a thing was not really that strange.
Although this speculation was somewhat laughable, it did not mean that such a bold conjecture was completely illogical or impossible.
When wealth became so vast that it drove people mad, as long as the benefits gained were substantial enough, even backstabbing a friend was not out of the question.
Furthermore, there was the speculation about the Ravenclaw Treasury.
Why did Professor Smith want to obtain the wealth within the Ravenclaw Chamber?
There were two speculations: the first was that the Ravenclaw Chamber was related to the heir, and the second was that she was purely after the wealth within. However, upon learning that the treasure was knowledge, Professor Smith's disappointed silhouette made sense.
If one were to associate the four of them with the Ravenclaw Treasury, the first possibility would actually be more plausible.
Moreover, Isabell might have discovered the existence of the Ravenclaw Treasury from her father's notes, suggesting that her father had likely entered it and possibly obtained something from within, thus becoming the heir.
However, since there could only be one heir, was he then eliminated?
But why didn't Professor Smith become the heir?
The reason Albert was certain that Professor Smith was not the heir was because during Easter, when he was invited by Mog MacDougal to the lake pavilion, he noticed that Professor Broad and the others were present, but there was a gap in the age group of those in their twenties and thirties. If they were truly related to the heir, or perhaps...what if Professor Broad and his companions were actually in charge of selecting the heir, or were even previous heirs themselves?
In that case, what was Professor Broad's purpose for coming to Hogwarts last year?
Was it for the Ravenclaw Treasury, or was it related to the matter of the heir? But there was one thing even Albert could not deny: Professor Broad had ultimately helped him a lot and showed him nothing but kindness, treating him as warmly as a family member.
This led Albert to initially have no suspicions about Professor Smith, not only because they knew each other, but also because he was unaware of the heir's affairs at the time and merely thought that Professor Broad intended to bring him into some sort of friend group.
If his bold speculation was true, what role did Isabell play in all of this?
A vengeful daughter seeking justice for her father's death?
Or a candidate vying for the position of heir?
Or perhaps...both?
"So, what role do I play in all of this?" Albert muttered to himself as he looked at the parchment in his hand. "Am I just an unlucky guy who was dragged into this mess for no reason, or am I also a candidate for the heir?"
Finally, what roles did Professor Broad and Mr. Mog MacDougal play?
Were they the judges selecting the heir?
Then...was Professor Smith the villainous candidate for the heir?
No, Professor Smith was probably no longer eligible. After all, she was a candidate in the previous round, and regardless of whether she had succeeded or not, the role of the candidate should have been eliminated.
Moreover, she had already failed.
Of course, there was also another possibility: Mr. Smith was also a "heir" judge, considering the precedent of Snape. Until the very end, one could never truly know the truth.
There was no choice but to accept that novel plots could sometimes be far-fetched, but reality could be even more absurd. Not to mention, he now lived in a world where he couldn't tell if it was a novel or reality.
Of course, all of this might just be Albert's own delusions, but he still believed that Professor Smith's arrival at Hogwarts was most likely related to the heir. After all, her last name was Rowena, and so-called coincidences were often just human-made.
Finally, the last question:
How did Isabell seem to know so much? Was she told by someone, did she deduce it from her father's leftover belongings, or did she have some way of gathering information?
All three possibilities existed, but there was no doubt that Isabell knew a lot, perhaps even more than him, and was closer to the truth of the matter. She simply chose not to divulge it.
In fact, Albert could understand Isabell's thoughts. If he were in her shoes, he would keep the secret to himself and not easily trust others.
"For some reason, this world always feels so unsafe," Albert muttered as he tore out the pages from his diary and threw them into the flames, watching them turn into ashes.
Now, he just hoped that all of this was just his own speculation and idle fantasy.
"The world is so dangerous," Albert murmured as he gazed at the burning paper in the fire. "I really should prepare more self-defense measures."
If possible, he would really like to carry two wands with him at all times.
And why two wands?
This was actually a kind of habitual thinking. The vast majority of wizards only carried one wand, but losing a wand meant losing the means to fight back. Many villains liked to gloat and revel in their victory after disarming their enemies.
However, that was an opportunity for their adversaries to turn the tables.
After all, villains often died because they talked too much.
(End of Chapter)
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